Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

As we turned to the New Year, the Mets’ front office got more active on things they can control: organizational coaching hires. It might still be a bit before we get any movement on the collective bargaining agreement side of things (more on that soon), but the Mets are seemingly trying to put themselves in the best position to hit the ground running into training camp with a set coaching staff as soon as the CBA gets resolved.

Filling Out the Coaching Staff

This week, the Mets filled out multiple coaching spots under Buck Showalter. Those positions and the people who fill them are:

Jeremy Hefner still remains from the previous administration as the pitching coach.

The most impressive hire is Chavez, who the Mets poached from the Yankees after he was hired in an assistant hitting coaching position by the Bombers earlier in the postseason. MMO writer John Flanigan detailed Chavez’s qualifications and his connection to general manager Billy Epper in an article earlier today.

Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News reported the Mets were originally thinking of bringing Chavez on as bench coach, but they pivoted to using his knowledge in the hitting coach position. He was the “headline-grabbing” hire she previously reported the Mets were looking to nail down this week. Taking him from the Yankees as a well-respected hire to fill a role much-maligned by fans the last two years feels significant.

Kirby was Showalter’s first-base coach throughout his tenure with the Orioles, and he acted in the same role in San Diego the last two seasons under Jayce Tingler. Cora, on the other hand, had been the third-base coach for the Pirates the last five seasons. MMO’s Mike Mayer pointed out Cora wasn’t strong at “stealing” runs as a third-base coach with the Pirates, but he is noted for his defensive coaching, too.

At the Minor-League Level, Too

The Mets settled the coaching staffs at all four primary minor-league levels this week. The head coaches for each level are:

  • Triple-A Syracuse: Kevin Boles
  • Double-A Binghamton: Reid Brignac
  • High-A Brooklyn: Luis Rivera
  • Low-A St. Lucie: Robbie Robinson

Many of the coaching positions underneath the managers came from promotions from within the organization. You can check out the full list of coaches in the minor leagues here.

CBA Update

Well, the players and owners still aren’t talking, according to a report from ESPN‘s Jeff Passan, and The Athletic‘s Evan Drellich says there are vague plans to talk “likely this month.”

Passan says the two sides “haven’t had one substantive conversation” since the lockout started December 2. Things are looking pretty bleak on this end with just 36 days until pitchers and catchers are due to report.

What’s Next?

The Mets still need a bench coach. (There are other dugout and coaching positions that need to pan out, too, but this is the chief one.)

Ken Rosenthal reported that Jeff Pickler, who runs the Cincinnati Reds’ outfield coach, is a candidate for the bench coach job, while Mike Puma reported that John Russell (Showalter’s bench coach with the Orioles) and Clayton McCullough, who the team interviewed to be its manager, are also candidates for the bench coach job. A bench coach job would be a theoretical promotion for McCollough as he currently is the first-base coach with the Dodgers.

The Mets were also denied permission from the Padres to talk to Ryan Flaherty for the bench coach position.